Wikipedia:Today's featured article/June 25, 2012

David Simon wrote the book that forms the basis of the first season of Homicide: Life on the Street.

The first season of Homicide: Life on the Street, an American police procedural drama television series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between January 31 and March 31, 1993. Created by Paul Attanasio and adapted from the 1991 non-fiction book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon (pictured), Homicide: Life on the Street followed the fictional detectives of the Baltimore Police Department homicide unit and the murder cases they investigate. The first season was broadcast Wednesdays at 9 p.m. EST, with the exception of the series premiere, which aired immediately after Super Bowl XXVII. The season introduced regular cast members Daniel Baldwin, Ned Beatty, Richard Belzer, Andre Braugher, Wendy Hughes, Clark Johnson, Yaphet Kotto, Melissa Leo, Jon Polito and Kyle Secor. Most of the primary characters were based on real-life Baltimore detectives from Simon's book, including Gary D'Addario, Terrence McLarney, Harry Edgerton, Donald Worden and Jay Landsman. Many of the season story arcs were also adapted from the book, most notably the 1988 Baltimore slaying of 11-year-old Latonya Kim Wallace, which was the basis for the murder case of Adena Watson in Homicide. The first season received consistently positive reviews, with several commentators declaring it one of the best shows on television at the time. However, the Nielsen ratings declined throughout the season, which Homicide producers attributed to a poor time-slot and heavy competition from the ABC comedies Home Improvement and Coach. The ratings led NBC executives to demand changes to the show before renewing Homicide for a second season. (more...)

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